Pane-Joyce Genealogy
Family of William Cornwall (394) & Margaret Hayward

1039. Sergt. William Cornwall. Born ca 1609 in Terling, Essex, Eng. William was baptized in Terling, Essex, on 25 May 1609.5 William died on 21 Feb 1677/8 in Middletown, CT.159 Religion: "William Cornewell" was admitted to Roxbury church as member #76 in a group that arrived in 1633.5

Edward E. Cornwall’s 1895 biography of William Cornwall:160
    “William Cornwall came to Massachusetts about 1634. He and his first wife, Joan, were members, in 1635, of Rev. John Eliot’s church at Roxbury. In 1636 he went with the ‘Great Removal’ to Connecticut, and in 1637 was one of the thirty-seven soldiers from Hartford in the expedition against the Pequod Indians. In 1638 he was at Saybrook. In 1639 he was back in Hartford and had a house lot of eight acres there, ‘No. 54, west of South St., south from the Lane’ (near the north end of the present [1895] Village St.). In the earliest record of his land at Hartford, dated February. 1639, he ia spoken of as ‘William Cornwell. Sergeant at Arms.’ He lived in Hartford till 1651; was a member of the church there, and probably all his children by hiS recond wife, Mary, were born there; but he did not reside all of that period in the village, for a document dated 1648 speaks of him as ‘at present resident in Hocanum, in the bounds of Hartford.’ In 1651 he removed with the first settlers to Middletown. His house lot there was ‘neare ye landing place by ye springe’ (present corner of Main and Washington Streets). His lands at Middletown on both sides of the Connecticut River were first recorded February 30, 1657,—total amount 903 acres. He was representative from Middletown in 1654, ’57, ’64 and ’65. In 1664 he was constable at Middletown. In 1666 he received a grant of land in East Hartford for his services in the Pequod war—(knowledge of this fact has been traditionary in the family). His town privileges, right of common,etc., in Hartford, he held by the ‘courtise of the town.’ In 1667 the General Court at Hartford ‘freed William Cornwell's head from the paying of rates.’ July 10, 1668, he joined the recently organized church at Middletown. In 1670 he was assessed at Middletown on £160, which was one of the largest assessments on the list of fifty-two householders. April 2, 1674, he made his will, in which he speaks of himself as ‘being well stricken in years (though, through mercy, in as perfect use of my understanding as ordinarily men are of my years), expecting my change to be very near.’ He divides his property among his eight children, John, William, Samuel, Jacob, Thomas, Sarah, Hester Willcox, and Elizabeth Hall, and makes careful provision for his ‘loving wife, Mary Cornwall,’ both during her widowhood and in the possible event of her marrying again and being in need. He requests his ‘loving brothers and friends Deac. Stocking and to Deac. Hall’ to oversee and execute the will, to which he signs his name. He died at Middletown, February 21, 1678. Estate £231.
    “From what part of England William Cornwall came is not known. There are some reasons for supposing it to be Hertfordshire. There are also reasons, by no means conclusive, for thinking him a brother of Thomas Cornwall who came to Massachusetts about the same time, was with him in Hartford in 1639, and afterwards went to Long Island and Rhode Island.
    “The name in early documents is variously written Cornwell, Cornwall, Cornell, Cornel, Cornil, Cornol, Corniel and Cornwayle.”

On 27 Sep 1632 William first married Joan Ranke in Fairfield, Essex, Eng.5 Religion: admitted to Roxbury church as member #77.

bef 1640 William second married Mary [Cornwall]. Mary died bef 1675.

Their children include:
3714 i. Sergt. John Cornwall (Apr 1640-2 Nov 1707)
3715 ii. William Cornwall (24 Jun 1641-18 Jun 1692)
3716 iii. Samuel Cornwall (Sep 1642-6 Dec 1728)
3717 iv. Jacob Cornwall (Sep 1646-8 Apr 1708)
3718 v. Sarah Cornwall (Oct 1647-)
3719 vi. Thomas Cornwall (Sep 1648-Nov 1702)
3720 vii. Esther Cornwall (May 1650-2 May 1733)
3721 viii. Elizabeth Cornwall (Jan 1651[/2]-)

Previous · Next
Contents · Index · Surnames · Contact

D. Pane-Joyce
http://aleph0.clarku.edu/~djoyce/gen/report/
Created Mar 2008 with the reluctant help of Reunion,
from Leister Productions, Inc.